Weapon



H.' B. FREEMAN WEAPON Filed March 24, 1943 INVENTOR.

HUGH B. FREEMAN ms ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 9, 1946 UIED STATES PATENT QFFICE Application 'March 24, 1943, Serial No. 480,294

(Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 75'7) 4 Claims.

This invention is a weapon, and is especially intended for use in anti-submarine warfare.

Various methods of combating submarines have been devised. The present invention relates to the towing of explosive bodies through an area wherein submarines are thought to be, thereby to sweep the area, the towed bodies being adapted to be exploded at or near any submarine that may be found in the area.

For convenience, the towed body of this invention may hereinafter be referred to as torpedo, although it is not of the common, self-propelled type. It may also be referred to as a charge or antisubmarine charge,

This sort of weapon is not broadly new. In the past, however, difiiculty has been experienced due to lack of stability under tow of bodies of the nature of this invention, especially at high speeds, there being a tendency for the torpedo to swing from one side to the other out of its proper track, sometimes so far as to break the water surface.

One object of the invention is to provide a stable torpedo adapted to be towed.

Another object is to provide a torpedo of the nature mentioned with means for securing the same to a towing cable between the ends thereof without parting the cable.

A further object is to provide a torpedo with means for readily attaching the same to and removing it from a cable intermediate the ends thereof.

Other objects will be apparent from a reading of the following specification and claims.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the antisubmarine charge of this invention, the tail portion thereof being somewhat broken for convenience of illustration;

Figure 2 shows a fragment of the head of the torpedo and the means for securing the same to the body portion;

Figure 3 is a section through the wing of the torpedo, the section being taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a vertical longitudinal section through the forward end of the body portion of the device, the plane of the section being indicated by the line 4-4 of Figure 1, and illustrating in full lines a cable and means for securing the torpedo thereto;

Figure 5 is a top view, partly in section, of the securing means of the invention, the plane of the section being indicated by the line 5--5 of Figure 4; and

Figure 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Figure 1.

Referring to the drawing, the antisubmarine charge of this invention comprises an ellipsoidal head member ill, a tubular body portion ll provided with a forward wing l2 and with after horizontal opposed fins i3 and Id. Opposed vertical fins also are provided, only one of which, it, may be seen in the drawing. The other vertical fin is like fin 15. In fact, since symmetry is very important in underwater towed bodies, all fins should be identical.

While head I8 is shown as an ellipsoid, it should be understood that this form is not critical, the principal consideration with respect to this member being that it olier low resistance to fluid fiow. This head is, of course, intended to carry an explosive and to be provided with means for firing the same, which means may be adapted to be actuated electrically (from the towing vessel), on contact, or in any other desired manner.

The body portion 5 l of the torpedo is separable from the head portion it. As will be seen from Figure 2, the rear portion of the head has arranged thereon a cylindrical collar l6. This collar is provided with a plurality of threaded holes, as H, i8, i5, 20, Z! and 22. The forward part of the tubular body member H is of a size to fit snugly over the collar 18, and is provided with holes matching the threaded openings in collar 16, as holes 23, 24, 25 and 26 (the remaining holes can not be seen). As will be apparent, the assembly of the parts comprises merely fitting the body member over collar 3, and running in screws. Two such screws, 27 and 28, can be seen in Figure 1.

Formed in the body member I l, at the forward end thereof are an upper longitudinal slot 29 and a lower, longer, longitudinal slot 30.

Transverse of the body member and secured thereto, as by welding, is a pin 3| and on this pin is a sleeve or bushing 32 intended to rotate or swivel on the pin. Fixedly secured to sleeve 32 is a U-bolt 33, having the usual two threaded members 34 and 35, and these members are so spaced as to receive the cable by which the body is to be towed. A keeper 36, adapted to fit over the members 34 and 35, is provided, and this keeper has a forward flat face 31, and a rear surface with a vertical groove 33 therein, the groove being proportioned to fit snugly about a portion of the towing cable and to cooperate with the inner surface of the U-bolt to clamp the cable securely. Bolts 39 and All for the members 34 and 35 complete the clamping assembly.

For convenience and to save space, the head portions of the antisubmarine charges of this invention will ordinarily be stored separate from the body and tail portions. Assuming this to be the case, a charge is secured to a cable, as cable 4! (Figure 4), in the following manner: the cable is placed in slots 29 and 30 in the forward end of the tubular body member ll, and U-bolt 33 is turned on its swivel in such a way that the members as and 35 straddle the cable. Keeper 36 is then placed on the bolt, with the rounded groove 38 adjacent the cable, and nuts 39 and nection between it and the towing cable which is flexible enough to permit the charge to adjust itself almost instantly to a rapid change in direction or other condition'of the tow;

The foregoing description is in specific terms, but should not be considered as limiting the invention. Rather, for the true scope of the invention, reference should be had to the appended claims.

This invention may be manufactured and/or used by or for the Government of the United States of America without the payment of any 40 are then placed on the bolt and tightened against the flat face 31 of keeper 38.

With the cable fastened securely relative to the body portion ll, except of course, for the swiveling action of U-bolt 33, collar l6 of head portion In is fitted within the forward end of the body portion, with the threaded holes in the former properly aligned with the holes in the latter, and screws 21 and 28, as well as others similar thereto, are run through the body member and into the collar N5 of head member l0.

It is thus possible to afiix an antisubmarine charge at any desired point on a towed cable,

without parting the cable; and a plurality of charges can be attached at intervals along the cable, thereby to sweep more thoroughly a sus pected area.

Slot 3b in the lower portion .of body member it should extend well aft of the clamping member. scription assumes a substantially parabolic curve in the water, with a much more pronounced downstream drift at the upper end thereof than at the lower end; .and slot 36 is long enough that body member II will not bear against the cable.

The length of body member if may vary, but it should be as great as is practicable, since stability depends, in part at least, on the spacing between the head memberand the stabilizing fins.

The proportions of the various parts and the location of the clamping member may vary. Since, however, all naval operations in dangerous waters should, in the interest of safety, be carried out at high speeds, the clamp should be as far aft of the center of gravity of the weapon as circumstances will permit; the maximum speed at which the weapon will retain its stability depends upon this spacing.

Wing l2, of course, is intended to provide a negative lift for the antisubmarine charge, and therefore it should approximate in section the section of Figure 3.

The construction described results in a charge which is inherently stable under tow, and :a con- A cable towed as contemplated in this de-' royalty thereon or therefor.

Iclaim:

1. An antisubmarine weapon for towing, including ahead member provided with an explosive charge, a body member having a tail end provided with stabilizing fins and a forward end portion provided with a cable-receiving recess, means aligned with the said recess for clamping the body member to a cable, and .means for securing the head member to the body member forwardly of said clamping means.

2. An antisubmarine weapon for towing, including a head member provided with an explosive charge, a body member provided with stabilizing fins and having a tubular forward end portion, said .end portion having slots forming a cable passageway therethrough, a cable-receiving clamp disposed within said end portion and aligned with said slots, and means for securing the head member to the body member forwardly of said clamp.

3. An antisubmarine weapon for towing, including a head member provided with an explosive charge, ;a body member provided withstabilizing fins and having a tubular forward end and vertically aligned slots extending longitudinally from said forward end, a clamp in the body member having a cable-receivingportion aligned with said slots and adapted to'swivel in alignto the body member forwardly of said clamping means, the said clamping means being aft of the center f gravity of the weapon.

'HUGH B. FREEMAN. 

